The City of Cape Town is proud to announce the launch of our Illegal Dumping campaign today. Each month, the City attends to numerous blocked sewer systems and toilets and clears illegally dumped materials from open spaces. We have also seen deaths as a result of illegal dumping when three-year-old Jordan Lewis died in April 2013 after playing near illegally dumped chemical waste in Delft.
Between October and December 2014, the City attended to around 25 000 sewer blockages across the city. On a daily basis, the City also attends to the unblocking of full-flush toilets in informal settlements. Illegal dumping is extremely costly as the City spends approximately R350 million annually to clear waste from open spaces, sewer systems and toilets.
The illegal dumping of waste not only places a burden on the City’s finances and resources, but can also pose a threat to public health. We are therefore launching an extensive campaign to deter this practice and keep communities safe. The R350 million we spend annually to clear illegal waste could be much better spent elsewhere on new services and infrastructure. For example, the City could have built 2 065 houses, or provided electricity for 31 627 homes.
As a responsive administration, the City is now shifting its focus from being reactive to the problem, to being more proactive. The Illegal Dumping campaign will create awareness about the damaging effects of illegal dumping and educate residents on the costs of clearing waste and on how to dispose of waste in the correct way.
The campaign will highlight both illegal dumping in open spaces by companies and residents and the improper disposal of waste into the sewerage system. While there are some hotspots, the problem of illegal dumping is a city-wide problem, and we will seek to raise awareness of this throughout the metro.
Some of the areas where illegal dumping in toilets is most prevalent include Dunoon, 6th Avenue in Kensington, and parts of Khayelitsha, while areas where dumping in open spaces is most prevalent include Nyanga, Brown’s Farm, Mitchells Plain and Epping Industria.
Problematic areas for sewer blockages include the South Peninsula area, Parow, Mitchells Plain and Philippi. The campaign will run in conjunction with the roll-out of green litter bins, which will be placed near toilets in informal settlements and public toilets so that residents can dispose of waste properly. Toilet blockages are also a problem throughout the metro where there are public toilets.
People have to share these facilities and we urge residents to keep these toilets clean for others who also use them. This year the City plans to roll out 844 bins in 15 informal settlements at a cost of approximately R844 000. Eventually these bins will be placed in all informal settlements where we are legally able to place them.
At present, incidents of illegal dumping are under-reported, and communities are encouraged to work with us to ensure that more incidents are reported. Residents can contact the City’s call centre on 0860 103 089 to report illegal dumping or sewer blockages.
We urge communities to take down the details of perpetrators and their vehicles, including registration numbers and, if possible, gather photographic evidence so that we can prosecute those who dump illegally. Help us stop illegal dumping by reporting problems and reporting the perpetrators so that those acting illegally can be brought to book. The combined message will be communicated on numerous platforms, including billboards, newspapers and in targeted communities.
Residents can visit the City’s website or their local sub-council office for a list of waste drop-off sites, which can also be found via the following link:
http://www.capetown.gov.za/en/Solidwaste2/Pages/Dropoffandrecyclingpoints2.aspx